Cosmetic compositions are provided which contain organophosphonic acid surface treated particulates. The powders are characterized as being pigments or fillers for said compositions. When surface treated, the powders are essentially hydrophobic in the sense that they repel water (i.e., they do not disperse in water), whereas in the absence of surface treatment, the same powders are observed to disperse in water. Simultaneously, the surface treated powders are essentially lipophilic, and hence exhibit improved dispersion characteristics in oily media commonly used in cosmetics, including silicones, hydrocarbons, natural esters, and synthetic esters.
The advantages of cosmetics compositions that contain pigments with such characteristics have been described in the prior art by several inventors. For example, Schlossman in U.S. Pat. No. 4,877,604 used titanate treated powders to achieve cosmetic compositions with (a) improved dispersion characteristics, (b) with the capacity for higher inorganic loadings, (c) with less settling and improved shelf stability, (d) with increased “smoothness” upon application, (e) with improved skin adhesion, and (f) with improved moisture resistance in the final skin application. Hollenberg, et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 5,143,722 disclosed similar improvements that were achieved via reactive polysiloxane or organosilane surface-treated pigments. In addition, fluorosilane surface treatments were used for the achievement of simultaneous hydrophobicity and lipophobicity by Farer, et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 6,315,990. Similarly, organometallic zirconium compounds have been used to achieve improved cosmetic compositions as taught by Patil, et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 5,599,530.
Although the prior-art cosmetics compositions share many advantages, they also share common shortcomings. For example, undesirable byproducts such as volatile organic compounds (VOC's), hydrochloric acid, or hydrogen are often evolved during the process of manufacturing the surface treated powders that are used in such compositions. When solvent-based carriers are used, environmental concerns can sometimes arise since the solvents must be volatilized during the later stages of manufacturing (i.e., during the drying process). In certain cases, and depending on the chemical nature and quantity of the solvent carrier, some of these volatile organic compounds can remain adsorbed on the particle surfaces together with unwanted by-products of oxidation. Also, even in the absence of organic solvent carriers, the nature of the hydrolysis and condensation reactions of many neat prior-art compounds leads to the inevitable evolution of volatile organic compounds, or other potentially deleterious reaction by-products. For example, when a surface treatment is performed by mixing and reacting polyhydrogensiloxanes with dry powders (as described by Hollenberg et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 5,143,722), or by dry blending n-octyltrialkoxysilane with inorganic powders as taught by Horn et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 5,543,173; incomplete hydrolysis can lead to the slow release of either hydrogen or VOC's over time (i.e., during the storage of the treated powders, or during the storage of finished products that contain the treated powders). When an alternative surface treatment is used such as an organohalosilane as taught by Weber, et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 6,214,106, the by-products include halogen salts such as hydrogen chloride, which can also be deleterious in many end-use applications.